In addition to breaking the news about Riley Reiff's option being picked up, Detroit Lions general manager Martin Mayhew shared some other contract-related tidbits during his Friday press conference. Specifically, he had some news on offensive guard Rob Sims and linebacker DeAndre Levy.
The Sims news is pretty simple. The Lions made a contract offer to his agent three weeks ago, but they haven't gotten a response back yet. This could be a situation where Sims is waiting to see how the draft plays out before he makes a decision on his team for 2015, or he may simply be hoping that a better offer comes his way at some point.
In any case, the Lions clearly want to bring Sims back as a veteran presence at left guard. There's no guarantee he will remain the starter if the Lions draft someone, but with no left guards currently on the roster, they need to sign a veteran at some point, whether it's Sims, Justin Blalock or someone else.
As for Levy, he is under contract through the 2015 season, but he is set to become a free agent next year. The Lions want to make sure that doesn't happen, though.
Mayhew: We've had some dialogue with DeAndre Levy's agent about a contract extension, nothing imminent
— Dave Birkett (@davebirkett) April 24, 2015
The Lions have plenty of time to get something done with Levy, and I suppose that's also the case with defensive tackle Haloti Ngata, who was traded to Detroit back in March. He is also set to become a free agent next year, and the Lions have not yet started extension talks with him.
Mayhew said no contract talks have happened with Ngata yet, but Ngata's side knows Lions are interested. Letting him get settled first
— Dave Birkett (@davebirkett) April 24, 2015
Following the draft, I'm sure extensions for Levy and Ngata will be two of the Lions' top priorities.